This invention relates generally to electrostatographic image forming methods, and more particularly, concerns a toner image forming apparatus and method for forming and developing an electrostatic latent image from an image area centered patch of developing or toner material coated on selectively charged portions of a photoreceptor. The method and apparatus advantageously diminish the quantity of non-development toner being handled by the machine during latent image development, and thus increases the efficiency of the machine as well as the quality of toner images formed.
Generally, processes for electrostatographic copying and printing are initiated by uniformly charging and selectively discharging a charge receptive photoreceptor in accordance with an original input document or an imaging signal, generating an electrostatic latent image on the photoreceptor. This latent image is subsequently developed into a visible image by a process in which charged developing material or toner solids are deposited onto the surface of the latent photoreceptor, wherein charged toner solids or particles in the developing material adhere to image areas of the latent image.
The developing material typically comprises carrier granules having marking or toner particles adhering triboelectrically thereto, wherein the toner particles are electrostatically attracted from the carrier granules to the latent image areas to create a powder toner image on the photoreceptor. Alternatively, the developing material may comprise a liquid developing material comprising a carrier liquid having pigmented marking particles (or so-called toner solids) and charge director materials dispersed and/or dissolved therein (so-called liquid toner), wherein the liquid developing material is applied to the latent image bearing photoreceptor with the marking particles being attracted to the image areas of the latent image to form a developed liquid image.
Regardless of the type of developing material employed, the toner or marking particles of the developing material are uniformly charged and electrostatically attracted to the latent image to form a visible developed image corresponding to the latent image on the photoreceptor. The developed image is subsequently transferred, either directly or indirectly, from the photoreceptor to a copy substrate, such as paper or the like, to produce a "hard copy" output document. In a final step, the photoreceptor is cleaned to remove any charge and/or residual developing material therefrom in preparation for a subsequent image forming cycle.
The above-described electrostatographic printing process is well known and has been implemented in various forms in the marketplace to facilitate, for example, so-called light lens copying of an original document, as well as for printing of electronically generated or digitally stored images where the electrostatic latent image is formed via a modulated laser beam. Analogous processes also exist in other electrostatic printing applications such as, for example, ionographic printing and reproduction where charge is deposited in image-wise configuration on a dielectric charge retentive surface. It will be understood that the instant invention applies to all various types of electrostatic printing systems and is not intended to be limited by the manner in which the image is formed on the photoreceptor or the nature of the photoreceptor itself.
As described hereinabove, the typical electrostatographic printing process includes uniformly charging the entire surface of the photoreceptor, image-wise exposing the entire surface, and physically transporting developing material including charged marking or toner particles into contact with the photoreceptor so as to selectively develop the latent image areas thereon in an image-wise configuration. Development of the latent image is usually accomplished by electrostatic attraction of charged toner or marking particles to the image areas of the latent image.
The development process is most effectively accomplished when the particles carry electrical charges opposite in polarity to the latent image charges, with the amount of toner or marking particles attracted to the latent image being proportional to the electrical field associated with the image areas. Some electrostatic imaging systems operate in a manner wherein the latent image includes charged image areas for attracting developer material (so-called charged area development (CAD), or "write white" systems), while other printing processes operate in a manner such that discharged areas attract developing material (so-called discharged area development (DAD), or "write black" systems).
Numerous and various alternative methods of developing a latent image have been described in the art of electrophotographic printing and copying. Of particular interest with respect to the present invention is the concept of forming on a surface, a thin layer of liquid developing material having a high concentration of charged marking particles, with the layer being acted upon by image-wise forces, and being separated into image and background portions. For the purposes of the present description, the concept of latent image development via direct surface-to-surface transfer of a toner layer via image-wise forces will be identified generally as Contact Electrostatic Printing (CEP). Reverse charge printing (RCP), is one variant of CEP, wherein a thin layer of liquid developer material is recharged into opposite charge polarities in the image and background areas, such that a biased image separator can transfer a toner image therefrom onto its surface and leave toner corresponding to the background areas on a second surface. Because of the relatively large fraction of toner mass traditionally left in the background areas, cleaning and reuse of such toner from the background areas ordinarily can detrimentally affect the efficiency of the overall printing system.
The following sample references may be relevant as background art for the present invention. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,504,138 discloses a method of forming a latent electrostatic image on a uniformly charged surface, and developing the latent electrostatic image by applying a thin viscous layer of electrically charged toner particles to the electrostatic latent image. The apparatus includes an applicator roller mounted for rotation in a container for toner suspension, an electrode arranged adjacent the circumferential surface of the roller to define an electrodeposition chamber therebetween, and electrical connections between the roller, the electrode and a voltage source to enable electrolytic separation of toner particles in the chamber, thus forming a thin highly viscous layer of concentrated toner particles on the roller.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,387,760 discloses a wet development apparatus for use in a recording machine to develop a toner image corresponding to an electrostatic latent image on a uniformly charged electrostatic latent image carrying member or carrier. The apparatus includes a development roller disposed in contact with or near the electrostatic latent image carrier and an application head for applying a uniform layer of wet developer material to the roller.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,436,706 discloses an imaging apparatus including a first member having a first uniformly charged surface having formed thereon a latent electrostatic image, wherein the latent electrostatic image includes image regions at a first voltage and background regions at a second voltage. A second member charged to a third voltage intermediate the first and second voltages is also provided, having a second surface adapted for resilient engagement with the first surface. A third member is provided, adapted for resilient contact with the second surface in a transfer region. The imaging apparatus also includes an apparatus for supplying liquid toner to the transfer region thereby forming on the second surface a thin layer of liquid toner containing a relatively high concentration of charged toner particles, as well as an apparatus for developing the latent image by selectively transferring portions of the layer of liquid toner from the second surface to the first surface.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,619,313 discloses a method and apparatus for simultaneously developing and transferring a liquid toner image. The method includes the steps of moving a photoreceptor including a charge bearing surface having a first electrical potential, uniformly applying a layer of charge having a second electrical potential onto the charge bearing surface, and image-wise dissipating charge from portions on the charge bearing surface to form a latent image electrostatically, such that the charge-dissipated portions of the charge bearing surface have the first electrical potential of the charge bearing surface. The method also includes the steps of moving an intermediate transfer member biased to a third electrical potential that lies between said first and said second potentials, into a nip forming relationship with the moving photoreceptor to form a process nip. The method further includes the step of introducing charged liquid toner having a fourth electrical potential into the process nip, such that the liquid toner sandwiched within the nip simultaneously develops image portions of the latent image onto the intermediate transfer member, and background portions of the latent image onto the charge bearing surface of the photoreceptor. In each of the sample types of references, the toner layer is formed or developed uniformly After the development, the toner materials in the areas that correspond to the background need to be fully recovered in order to be used for subsequent development processes. In addition, in each of the sample references, the photoreceptor is typically charged uniformly, meaning that the entire surface of the photoreceptor is charged. Subsequently, non-image or background areas, for example, are then discharged in order to prevent them from being developed with non-image developing toner, along with image areas. In each of these references, image quality and inefficiency of the method and apparatus are therefore concerns. Image quality for example is a concern because it may vary significantly due to numerous conditions affecting latent image formation as well as latent image development. In particular, image development can be affected by charge levels, both in the latent image, as well as in the developing material. For example, when the charge on dry toner particles becomes significantly depleted, binding forces with the carrier also become depleted, causing an undesirable increase in image development, which, in turn, causes the development of the latent image to spread beyond the area defined thereby.
Inefficiency in an image forming method and apparatus is impacted significantly, for example, by the quantity or volume of non-development or unused charged toner material that is applied to the photoreceptor and moved through the development nip. Such non-development charged toner can undesirably affect charge levels of cooperating elements, and of course has to be removed or cleaned subsequently from the photoreceptor in order to ready the photoreceptor for recharging and reuse. Such cleaning or removal efforts involve inefficiencies in themselves, and it is of course time consuming and costly to recycle or dispose of such non-development or unused charged toner after it has been applied to the photoreceptor, and moved through the development nip.